Hybrid drives for vehicles are known. In the hybrid drives discussed here, an internal combustion engine is combined with at least one electric machine so that plural drive sources are available for the vehicle. In this connection, the drive torques of the drive sources can be selectively supplied to a drive train of the vehicle according to a driver's input. This allows different drive options to be selected in known manner as a function of specific driving situations, these options being suitable, in particular, for improving the ride comfort and reducing the energy use, as well as for reducing the emission of pollutants.
In hybrid drives for vehicles, serial arrangements, parallel arrangements and mixed arrangements of an internal combustion engine and electric machines are known. Depending on the arrangement, the electric machines can be connected directly or indirectly to the drive train of the internal combustion engine. It is known to arrange the internal combustion engine and/or the electric machines in such a manner that they can be operatively connected to each other by gears, for example, planetary gear sets or the like, and couplings.
To be able to respond to a driver's request for drive power from the hybrid drive in an optimum way, the drive motors of the hybrid drive need to be controlled in a coordinated manner, which is accomplished by a so-called “motor controller”, as is generally known. In the process, the drive motors can be controlled based on a desired operating state of the hybrid drive to be determined by the motor controller. The purpose of the determination of this desired operating state is, in particular, low fuel consumption, dynamic performance of the vehicle, and low pollutant emission.
Moreover, it is generally known to equip vehicles with an electronic control brake system, such as an electrohydraulic brake or an electromechanical brake.